Being Held
by Solora Goldsun
Summary: During a lazy evening of watching anime and dozing on the couch with Max, Victoria muses on how different their relationship is from anything else she's experienced. (Love is Strange AU.)


**So, I recently discovered Life is Strange. What followed was the most emotional soul-stabbing I have endured in a long time. I've been teetering on the edge of really wanting to replay it, and really** _ **not**_ **wanting to replay it. Then, I found out that some fans made a visual novel lesbian dating sim game taking place in an AU where nothing bad happened, nobody died, and everyone is happy. Um, YES PLEASE!**

 **Hours later, after much squealing, I can tell you that Love is Strange will heal your soul, cleanse your body, and possibly cure cancer. Also, they replaced Mark Jefferson with a sentient hot dog person. I have no clue why, but I have accepted it.**

 **This takes place after the Good Ending for the Victoria route. Enjoy!**

The sensation of being held was strange and new to Victoria Chase.

Over the course of her teen years, she had been in several relationships. Most of them had ended after two months at most. She was familiar with long make-out sessions in a closet. She knew all about grinding on a dance floor (which was practically an Olympic sport at the Vortex Club parties). And, though she had never quite gotten to the point of having sex with someone, she would sometimes partake in actions that could be called foreplay by some.

Despite all of her experience, however, nothing had ever felt as intimate as the alien feelings that arose within her as she felt Max Caulfield snuggle just a little bit closer to her on the couch, as if the distance between them hadn't been small enough already.

"You'd better not be falling asleep again," Victoria drawled, rolling her eyes as she felt Max's shoulders slump tiredly. "I'm not explaining the plot to you if you miss anything."

"It's been a long day," Max whined, her voice coming out thick and dopey. "And you're really warm."

Victoria's cheeks took on a pinkish tinge that Max thankfully wouldn't see. She was tempted to tell Max to sit up straight, but she honestly didn't want her to move away. It was a bit pathetic, when she thought of it.

Letting out an exaggerated sigh, she murmured a halfhearted "Whatever." and wrapped the blanket they shared more firmly around their shoulders. When Max responded with a sleepy nuzzle against the side of her neck, her expression softened.

"Oh, why bother?" she said, her tone much fonder than she had intended. Flipping off her plasma, she placed the remote to the side and shifted, silently urging Max to lie down fully next to her.

Max moved away from her, just enough to look up at her face. Her freckled cheeks were flushed and she looked a little nervous. "Sorry. I know you wanted to show me that movie. You're not disappointed, right?"

Victoria groaned. She hated when Max got anxious about stupid shit like that. "Don't worry about it. We can watch it later. There's no point if you're too tired to read the dialogue." She gently ruffled Max's hair. "Besides, we got more work done on our portfolios. That's what's important."

Max laughed, batting Victoria's hand away playfully. "Hey, watch it! I may not use a dozen hair products, but I like to look kinda presentable."

"Well, if you wore more of those clothes I keep getting for you, you would," Victoria replied promptly.

"Hey, I wear them," Max protested as she lay down. "But I'm not ditching my doe shirts completely."

"One can always hope…" Victoria murmured as she positioned herself next to Max, blushing a little when her girlfriend immediately responded by wrapping her arms around her waist and cuddling close again. She pulled the blanket up and looped her arms loosely around Max.

A month ago, if anyone had told Victoria that she would be in this position with Max, and publicly acknowledging her as her girlfriend, she would have laughed right in their face. Though she had always secretly respected the infuriating hipster and her work, she had never planned on openly admitting that fact.

Then, when Mx. Dog announced the photo contest and Max, probably suffering an aneurysm at the time, asked to be Victoria's partner, everything had changed. Over the course of a week, Victoria found herself desperately wanting to get Max out of her shell and inject some confidence into her.

At first, she had told herself that it was because she was a fellow artist who couldn't stand seeing good talent wasted. It had absolutely nothing to do with that dorky grin that Max would get on her face when she got excited about something, the fact that she had bought Victoria a _Ghost in the Shell_ figurine as nothing more than a kind gesture, the way she was just so damn considerate of someone who had treated her like shit for over a year…

Thinking back, impulsively kissing her less than an hour after their big win had been practically inevitable.

Still, she couldn't bring herself to regret what had followed. Of course, she had had to deal with several annoying encounters with Chloe, Warren, and Rachel, who all had the same basic message of "You break Max's heart, we break your face." Though Victoria hadn't particularly enjoyed these conversations, it had been rather touching to see just how much Max's friends cared about her.

 _I doubt anyone would stick their neck out like that for me…_ she mused. Then, the warm form next to her shifted a little closer, reminding her that there was at least one person who would.

"Hey, Max?" Victoria murmured, unsure of whether or not her girlfriend was asleep already.

"Hm?" came the drowsy reply.

"Let's take some shots at the lighthouse tomorrow."

Max shifted to look up at Victoria, who felt her heart stutter at the surprised, tired smile she was treated to. "Really? I thought you hated nature shots."

Victoria shrugged. "Well, you don't. We promised to help each other out. You walked all over downtown with me yesterday, so I suppose I can handle trekking up that giant hill." She tried to will the growing blush from her face. "But, if there are, like, any bugs _at all_ , we're leaving."

"Deal." Max scooted up to lightly peck Victoria's lips before nestling against her again. "Mind if I crash here tonight?"

"I assumed that decision had already been made," Victoria muttered, unable to keep from smiling gently as she allowed herself to relax against the cushions.

As she lay there, she realized what made this simple, warm embrace so different from anything else she had experienced in the past: It made her feel safe. None of her previous relationships had done that. There had been plenty of excitement and physical pleasure, but being with Max was different. While she certainly enjoyed kissing her more than she would ever admit, and definitely wouldn't say no when the subject of becoming more intimate came up, there was something else as well.

Holding Max and being held by her was a sensation that the small, sappy corner of her mind likened to coming home. She didn't have to put up a front around Max. She didn't need to be anything but herself, and Max would be perfectly fine with it (as long as she wasn't being a total bitch to someone). She could relax. She could allow herself to temporarily forget about the stress of the day and feel legitimately happy.

Closing her eyes, she hugged Max closer and did just that. She savored the warmth of her girlfriend, the soft puffs of air that caressed her neck every time Max exhaled, and the gently-creeping drowsiness that was slowly engulfing her.

"Max?" she murmured.

There was no reply. Max was already asleep.

Victoria chuckled quietly. "Typical." Breathing a contented sigh, she brushed her lips against Max's forehead before allowing sleep to take her. No dreams or anxious thoughts about her work or future plagued her mind. When she woke up the following morning, she realized that she had slept the night through with a smile on her face.

 **This was shameless fluff, I know. I just desperately needed to get some of this mental diabeetus out of my system after playing that freaking game! Seriously, if you haven't already, download and play Love is Strange. It's totally free. The links are on Tumblr. Just type the game in the search engine. You won't regret it.**

 **I plan on writing several more fics in this AU in the future. Many will involve Kate, since Kate's route was the most adorable thing I've ever seen in my life. Until then, peace out!**


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